Sorry. It will be noticeable. My sink is off-center by one inch and it is one of the driving forces for the kitchen renovation. It has always bugged me. Only you can decide if it will bother you enough to force a change. Noticeable... yes. If it were in my home I would hate looking at it everyday and would be upset every time I cooked or had to look at it.

Since your hood is 6 inches wider than your cooktop, I think you can get away with cooktop being off by an inch or so as long as you hood is centered between the windows. If you hood were off center between the windows that would be a do over. It may bother you that the cooktop is not centered perfectly under the hood but I doubt that others would notice it unless you point it out. Others would probably have to drop a line down from each outside edge of the hood to the outside edges of the cooktop and then use a ruler to measure and see that there is more overhang on one side of the cooktop than the other. If your hood was the same width it would be noticeable. Good thing you followed the standard of having the hood wider than the cooktop.
If your cooktop is already installed post a picture from a distance so the forum experts can see it before they give their advice. But sight unseen, I say definitely center the hood and keep the rest as is.

I don't know...my unlevel hood made me stop work in that area in order to address. I did have it fixed. That's an awful lot of cab monies, to have the look marred.

Maybe, there a way to mock it up? Maybe the room is large enough to absorb the look? I can truly relate to wanting to be done, as I'm there myself, but looking at it in the long run, could be years of punishment.

Ditto Holly.

I have a 42" hood over my 36" induction cooktop.
The distance between them is a good amount.
So it would be difficult to notice the difference, unless you're staring at it, looking for it.

Just make sure the hood is centered.

Good think you went for the 36" hood! With it centered, you will always know the cooktop is slightly off center, but you'll never be able to really tell unless you stand there and deliberately look for it. You'll be too busy cooking in your new kitchen and reveling in the compliments for it to bother you! No one else will ever really be able to tell over 1". If they can, and they comment on it, throw them out of your kitchen!

I doubt that any kitchen is absolutely, 100% perfect...we all have small things that we know and are aware of in our kitchens but no one else ever notices. I have cabinets flanking my kitchen window and although we measured and measured and measured again, the left side is a bit larger from window to cabinet than the right side. We decided to just make the window trim cover the whole area from window to cabinet on each side, even though one side is a little bigger it is not noticeable at all, even to my eye and we did the work. Also, my sink is purposely not centered under the window to give me a little more landing space next to the fridge...not one single person has ever noticed it or if they did they didn't say anything...and if they did so what, it's my kitchen and that's the way I wanted it. I highly doubt anyone would notice the stove not being centered under the hood...and who cares if they did...is their house perfect? Don't sweat the small stuff...when you're living in your kitchen you'll stop thinking about it and noticing it.

I am so sorry this happened, we just avoided this exact problem...we had to actual order 2 extra cabinets...but I would rather wait for the extra cabinets then have it already installed and not be able to change it without jumping thru hoops.

If I had paid 50K for cabinets, I would definitely get them to fix it, I know a total PAIN as I know how badly doing a reno and being at the end ...you just want it done.

Way I look at, you have 2 options:
1. throw your hands up and say Oh well, (I am sure you will be the only one to really notice it anyway) and move on with you life....
2. Endure the pain of having someone go back and fix it.

Personally, I would opt for #2, but that is just my personality. If you can live with it and be happy...just move on and enjoy your new kitchen.

Good Luck!

Gaby, the problem with #2 is that the counters are already in. You're not going to fix the issue without replacing the counters too. It starts to snowball. 1" really isn't a big deal in the scheme of the whole kitchen, I promise.

Many many people have commented that some feature in their kitchen was off by even more, and they never even noticed it until they were in the process of demo'ing the kitchen.

"Many many people have commented that some feature in their kitchen was off by even more ... "

So true. I think most of us are living with an inconsitency or two and they tend to bother us less over time. Whether or not yours is noticible to YOU depends on you. Some people's eyes are attracted to the slightest bit of asymetry. If you aren't one of those people, you likely won't notice after a while that the cooktop is off. Hopefully, your eyes will be attracted most to the hood, which hopefully WILL be centered between the windows.

From a contractor's perspective, this is a failure to properly assess the fussiness level of a customer and a consequence of taking too long to get a job done.

Since the hood is 42", unless someone carries a plumb bob with them, you're the only one that will ever notice.
Smile, and move on ... Chris

Center the hood. Don't sweat the cooktop. Be happy!

"From a contractor's perspective, this is a failure to properly assess the fussiness level of a customer and a consequence of taking too long to get a job done.
"

Notice how the OP is only worried if she lets it go, will it look bad . Something she does not know for herself. She is perfectly willing to accept the error if her $100,000 kitchen isn't going to look screwed up. Sounds like a good and very reasonable customer to me. They are lucky.

OP, hyperfocus and angst over details of the unknown is pretty common during reno fatigue. I think the suggestion to center the hood would fly. There is distance between the other elements and we usually aren't viewing things dead center. From an angle, things look different, shifted, off center anyway, so it would not be obvious. An inch is within tolerance for it to look alright. Get the hood up and see what you think.

So frustrating and exhausting! But it should be alright in the end.

My stove and hood are centered on one another, but the cabinet doors over the hood are slightly too far to the left. It is the focal point of my kitchen, the most visible thing. I had lived here 13 years when my kitchen was remodeled and if the hinge guy hadn't pointed it out to me, I would still be unaware of it. I look at it now and can see it, but I'm curiously detached from it. It doesn't bother me one whit. I personally have so many imperfections that it comforts me to not feel inadequate in my own kitchen.

So Treb's point is that it's completely fine for a contractor to mismeasure by a full inch or more in a span of only 44" on a set of $50,000 cabinets as long as he a) hurries up and gets the money before anyone notices, and b) also makes sure the customer is too blind to see or too dumb to care. A pretty bold position for a contractor to admit to on an Internet forum, but he is consistent.

Oh szruns, I am sad for you. Amazing how a little inch can become such a problem. I personally would have a hard time doing nothing because even if no one else noticed, I would know. On the other hand, like you, I would definitely not want the hassle of ripping out the countertops and base cabs for an inch. I decided I would ask for my DH's (GC 30+ yrs) perspective on this one just for fun. I gave him the jist of your issue and asked what he'd do. He said, "I'd slide the windows over." I said, "won't that be a big deal, cost a lot, mess up exterior, mess up upper cabs plan, etc..." He was on his way out the door, so not get much detail. He said something about maybe having some play in the windows rough opening, playing with the casing or trim size, moving things a fraction here and there to get it as close as possible. He did not act like it would be a huge ordeal or cost that much. I told him the cost of your kitchen, and he said you should get it perfect for that kind of $. Maybe this is not a reasonable solution for you, but I just thought on the wild side I would throw it out there. Where there's a will there a way... I hope it works out and you get the dream kitchen you deserve and worked so hard for.

marcolo:

Wouldn't it be more fair to characterize the width in question as the entire run of the cabinets instead of 44"? Suppose the homeowner wanted no fillers, but centering the cabinets perfectly would pull a corner cabinet away from a wall an inch?

My guess is that you paid for custom cabinets so that everything would fit perfectly. If you were fine with an inch off here and an inch off there you wouldn't have made this choice at this price (and you wouldn't have noticed what the pros did not).

You won't necessarily regret not having this fixed but if you're anything like me you will ALWAYS regret not having asked for what you wanted. Under no circumstances should you end up with a backsplash you don't love (my particular bias)!!!!!!!

Call your installer. And for that matter, just because the niche was drywalled doesn't mean you can't get it back. The framing is there - just ask your GC to cut it out. I know you're tired. I can read it in your post. Just hang in there. As the Greeks say, now that you've eaten the donkey, don't leave the tail. One of these days soon well be marveling at your reveal.

Good luck!

This post was edited by EAM44 on Tue, Dec 23, 14 at 17:02

Trebuchet, I think you assume that all contractors are as skilled and meticulous as you are and that if a client is unhappy it is probably the client being mental. I wish it were so. I wish we all got to work with contractors of your skill level, but the sad fact is most people are bad at their jobs.

From a contractor's perspective, this is a failure to properly assess the fussiness level of a customer and a consequence of taking too long to get a job done.

This is what you said. It's okay for a cooktop between two windows to be off center unless the customer is "fussy" and it's too bad the contractor didn't high tail it out of there sooner.

For fifty G's I'd expect a cabinetmaker to own a tape measure. And if Brazilian tile guys or starving art school wallpaper hangers can figure out where to hide the bad cuts, so should a cabinet guy. Whether the client is "fussy" or not.

I might suggest to the contractor that if he felt it was okay to leave things "off" like that, I hope he'd understand if my figures were "off" on the check as well.

"I might suggest to the contractor that if he felt it was okay to leave things "off" like that, I hope he'd understand if my figures were "off" on the check as well."

Perfect response. I'm saving that one for future reference!

jellytoast for the win! :)

"From a contractor's perspective, this is a failure to properly assess the fussiness level of a customer ..."

From a customer's perspective, this is failure of the contractor to measure and install the job correctly. Rather than waste time trying to assess the "fussiness level" of their customers, perhaps contractors should just assume that all of their customers are "fussy" and proceed according to "fussy" standards. Customers would be a whole lot happier if their contractors were "fussy" about the quality of their own work.

I agree, for them to command this kind of money, you expect perfection. If it bothers you after the hood goes up, they need to make good. They have insurance and markups to cover their errors, which should not be your problem. That's life, and it happens. They charge the prices to cover you. Make sure you are happy in the end.

And do have them open up the niche if you want it!! Good grief. Who do they have doing this stuff? The cheapest labor they can find? That is not what you are being charged for! That is their gamble, not yours.

Could not agree more jellytoast! As a contractor for almost 40 years, ALL my customers are fussy, but none more than me... Chris

Hey, that's my line, jelly! Some contractors here make poo pooing noises when a homeowner makes a "big deal" about every little thing that's in the contract. Ok. Contract says 50, I pay you 40. See? No big deal!

I found a picture of your kitchen from a previous thread. It was a straight shot of your windows and cooktop wall before your granite was in. (Which BTW is going to be Fabulous!) I showed hubby. He could see where the cooktop cabinet is slightly off and looks closer to the left side window next to your oven cab. Contractor did not measure properly; it happens. But...they should have caught that and at the least during install. No way they didn't see that it was a problem. They were just crossing fingers you wouldnt say anything, instead of admitting the mistake. In my contractor/dh's humble opinion, the easiest fix that you could do is order a new custom window on the right side near the corner. If it is exactly one inch wider and the same height, you really won't notice it being different from the other window next to it in corner. Good you have nice fat trim. It is way easier to cut the opening bigger and do new trim, then if you had to go smaller. You can have your builder go ahead and finish the kitchen with the hood centered above cooktop where it is now. No need to rip out your beautiful granite that you so carefully picked out. Everything will look centered and perfectly planned with the nice matching spice pullouts on the sides of your cooktop. Then once the new window comes in a few weeks, have it installed. Would that maybe work??? I'm really routing for you because I know you are dealing with caring for your mom and family and have to get this DONE. My father in law had Alzheimer's and my prayers are with you.

Nothing is more counterproductive to a remodeling project than unrealistic expectations. The calls for perfection here aren't doing any prospective remodeling clients any good.

Fussy AND unrealistic expectations? Exactly what can we expect from our contractors? Of course mistakes are going to be made, but why shouldn't we expect our contractors to fix them before proceeding to the next step until it gets so far gone in the process that it's a PITA to fix? I don't think it's unrealistic to expect measurements in a critical area for symmetry to the kitchen to be pretty much on point. After all, lots of people end up with cooktops and hoods that AREN'T off by an inch, so it's not impossible. A contractor needs to take responsibility somewhere, rather than blaming every one of his mistakes on his fussy, perfectionist customer. At the very least, he could spend a little time trying to figure out how to make it better.

I missed the sink center in my own condo in Toledo by about an inch. It was an integrated 60/40 so the asymmetry threw your eye off. No way was I going to rebuild that top. My wife and the guy who eventually bought it never seemed to care. Works for me.

Tre, the difference is that you were working in your own kitchen. Lots of us are living with mistakes made by others and we've had to pay for those mistakes. It can be hard to take.

Something most posters have been ignoring:

OP: but I don't WANT it fixed if I can avoid it, as I just want it DONE.

Bottom line is that if the 36" cooktop is 1" off center the 42" hood....

To center the cooktop with the hood, the cooktop needs to be shifted only one-half inch.

You're not going to notice that one-half inch underneath your generously & fortunately oversized hood.

Yeh, it's a little disappointing that Perfection wasn't achieved but, as is often said, 'stuff happens.' No way do I see that a nearly imperceptible error needs to trip the reset button. Nevermind the righteous indignation exhibited by a number of responders. My advice is to weigh what the toll is going to be on your own self and determine if it is 'worth it' to get things 100% perfectly Perfect.

I'd like to see a current picture.
While this should NEVER happen, in most kitchens I'd tend to agree that upper symmetry is enough... in this case I'm not so sure. I could imagine the cooktop making the discrepancy more apparent than it looks in the partially completed picture. Also not sure on the cause, base cabinet, window, or cooktop cut out.

Looking at the in progress picture it looks as if there is a 1" gap between the casing and the tall cabinet on the left, that bothers me. It looks as if it is there to keep the ear on the sill consistent on both sides of that window, but the right hand window does not mirror that. I wonder if closing it would make things better or worse? Cannot tell from the picture.

In the long run only you can decide what to do, so try to relax, discuss the solutions available and determine based on your own needs.

Expectations- part of my job is to manage them, to understand what the clients are, avoid/diffuse impossible ones, and make sure whoever is doing the work is aware of and follows them. It is even ok for clients to have what might be "unreasonable " expectations so long as I've made the client aware and that they are: sufficiently important to then, not impossible, and they are willing to pay for them. Part of my job is to entertain those expectations, see that they are met if they after to the client. That's why we call them clients instead of customers.

Home improvement is stressful enough without surprises. I work under the premise that it produces a form of temporary insanity same as other major life events. (love, marriage, birth, death,jobs...)

I was a "professional perfectionist" for 20 yrs working for "professionally unreasonable" clients. I have had to learned to accept what is reasonable in own life. An inch doesn't work in hand grenades or construction. I work with some folks who frame to an eighth. I design to 32nds, specify 1/16ths, and consider an 1/8 acceptable. In kitchens that is reasonable.

My sink and faucet are slightly off-center (maybe half an inch), underneath my kitchen window. Unless someone is standing dead-center in front of the window, you can't see it. No one has ever noticed it since the house was finished and we moved in, because there are so many other things to look at in a kitchen. It's not like there is a glowing neon arrow pointing at it.

It mildly bugged me at the time, but even with my OCD-like tendencies and preference for symmetry, I never notice it now.

A feeding frenzy of pro consumerism is just as bad as unreasoning support of contractors. It's a disservice to everyone to not have a team attitude rather than an us vs. them.

Sure, there are a few complete hacks out there, and some people get more than their share of them. But, as a whole, contractors want to do a good job. They want to make their customers happy. They aren't in it just for the money. They love it when someone smiles in joy at the detail on the window trim, or runs their hands over the perfect counter edge. They like making people happy. They enjoy their work.

However, some contractors can be great craftsmen and still make the occasional error. They're human, just like you. And they don't always communicate well what's in their brains. What comes out of their mouths can be awkward or stumbling even though it's clear to them.

Be part of the team, and work with your contractor. Brainstorm as to how to fix a problem instead of laying blame. If this is error #93, then it's obvious where the blame lies: you should have fired him long before now. But, if this is the normal human error with your normal responsible contractor, he hates it as much as you do. And he wants to find a solution as much as you do. Help him do that by exploring those solutions.

"normal human error" perhaps the most common error on a job site, at least for me, comes from the practice of " burning an inch". Measurement is take one inch from the end of the tape to avoid discrepancy from the tab. Problem arises if that is not transferred (subtracted) properly, the result is off by exactly one inch. Worse still if an inch is added instead of subtracted.

Other easy mistakes: wrong side of a stud: = 3-1/2" or not center of stud= 1-3/4", failing to account difference in width between the front frame and the back of a cabinet, 1/8-1/4" per side, missing a severely out of plumb wall on end of run (worst when it leans in). There's a long list of gotchas available, same as the rest of life.

"A feeding frenzy of pro consumerism is just as bad as unreasoning support of contractors."

We suffer through both here. And the pros rarely complain when the popular vote swings in their favor. It is hardly a feeding frenzy of pro-consumerism to have a little debate on whether or not a customer is being too fussy when measurements are off. The conversation was going right along the lines of the OP's request as to how to solve the problem without creating a big deal until fussiness of the customer was mentioned. Then it did tend to go off track ... certainly not the first or last time THAT will happen, lol.

"Something most posters have been ignoring:
OP: but I don't WANT it fixed if I can avoid it, as I just want it DONE."

The OP did also ask, "Is this going to be noticeable? Should I have a fit? What should I do? Please tell me it won't be noticeable and I can just leave it be . . . Or not . . . "

"To center the cooktop with the hood, the cooktop needs to be shifted only one-half inch."

I was under the impression that the cooktop was already in place and could not be moved. And if it was that easy, why didn't the contractor already do it?

This post was edited by jellytoast on Wed, Dec 24, 14 at 13:38

"normal human error" perhaps the most common error on a job site, at least for me, comes from the practice of " burning an inch". Measurement is take one inch from the end of the tape to avoid discrepancy from the tab. Problem arises if that is not transferred (subtracted) properly, the result is off by exactly one inch. Worse still if an inch is added instead of subtracted.

Other easy mistakes: wrong side of a stud: = 3-1/2" or not center of stud= 1-3/4", failing to account difference in width between the front frame and the back of a cabinet, 1/8-1/4" per side, missing a severely out of plumb wall on end of run (worst when it leans in). There's a long list of gotchas available, same as the rest of life.

"To center the cooktop with the hood, the cooktop needs to be shifted only one-half inch."

Clumsy wording on my part. What I was trying to say, when it comes to centering stuff, being off by an inch isn't as big as it sounds--requiring only one-half of an inch of correction. That is, to suggest that this error is even less apt to be noticed by all but the very most discriminating eye.

On a technical note, a cooktop can be fudged as far as the flange covering the opening will allow. A 3/4" flange covering a snug opening could easily have 3/8" of one side relieved to move the cooktop top left or right. If you needed a 1/2", you're only off by an 1/8" now.

i think you might be able to hide this with the molding around the windows. go ahead and mount the hood centered over the cooktop. Then use different width moldings on the windows on the hood side so that the gap between the hood and the molding is the same.

You might have to be a bit imaginative with the backspash, depending what you're doing.